Vistara seeks hosts to fill long-haul gap amid 787 delays

Vistara is in talks with lessors to get long-haul jets to fill a gap left by delays in Boeing 787 deliveries, CEO Vinod Kannan said.
Vistara, owned by Singapore Airlines and Tata Group, is waiting to receive four aircraft from Boeing’s 787 production line, but deliveries have been frozen worldwide since May 2021 due to deficiencies in quality control.
To provide replacement capacity in the short term, Vistara is in talks with lessors about renting 787s, Kannan said in an interview with Reuters.
“There is plenty of availability (of aircraft) in the market, as there are still parts of the world where flying has not come back,” he said, adding that the company has yet to make a final decision on whether to lease or not. airplanes.
Kannan said the market was too volatile to consider ordering new planes now. But in the longer term, Vistara could also consider buying Airbus A350s, he said.
Vistara has approximately 50 aircraft, including two 787-9s received before the delivery suspension and a mix of Airbus and Boeing narrow-body aircraft. It plans to take in 20 additional aircraft by the end of 2023, mainly A320s for domestic use and for nearby international destinations.
Expanding its global footprint is a priority for Vistara, which started operations in 2015 but has not yet turned a profit. The domestic market is dominated by low cost carriers, such as IndiGo. Flying internationally offers stronger prices.
-B